Recently I read a blog post on CurlyNikki.com entitled When you Trust Amazon more than God that really hit home for me. The blogger compared how we feel after ordering something online to how we feel after we pray for something. The bottom line of the post is this: when we order an item from Amazon we actually expect it to arrive but when we pray for something we lack that same confidence that what we asked for will be fulfilled. The writer presented several reasons why she thinks we lack confidence in God fulfilling our “orders” and not Amazon. A common thread in the reasons was clear to me: our thoughts.

For Amazon we know we can actually have what we ordered because we paid for it. And, if it’s hasn’t arrived when we expected we can wait a little longer without really being too stressed about it. If the item is late we can track it to check on its shipping status and location and can get a refund if something has happened. For God, though, we’re not always sure if we will get what we ordered and, if we are sure, that certainty starts to fade if it hasn’t arrived when we thought it would. Of course we can’t track God’s answers to our prayers so when they are delayed we think all kinds of things. Maybe God doesn’t want to help us or He didn’t hear our request. Maybe what we asked for is too big. Maybe we don’t deserve it and we haven’t gotten it because we didn’t “pay” for it by always doing the right things. Maybe we should settle for something less.

Well, do we ever settle for something less than what we ordered from Amazon? Absolutely not! We expect what we ordered to be delivered and we won’t settle for anything less because it was paid for, we made a sacrifice of our money in exchange for the goods. Let us take this same approach in faith. The next time you fix your mind to make a request from God (or of yourself even) do so with the expectation that your request will be fulfilled as ordered. After all, it was paid for; you didn’t pay but it there WAS payment. And when there is a delay think of it this way: Amazon delivers what you ordered with no concern for how it will affect you. It makes no difference to Amazon if the item will help you or hinder you as long as you pay the fee. God, however, is concerned about you so the delay in delivery of your order may simply be that something (or someone) else is better fitting to meet your needs. Expect the best and accept nothing less!